1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the gathering and interpretation of information from mobile stations and, more particularly, to generating a map of traffic conditions from data collected from mobile units over a wireless link providing instant position data.
2. Background Description
The gathering and interpretation of traffic information is a manual operation. Traffic information gathering services such as Metro Networks rely on human information sources; e.g., police and fire departments, traffic aircraft, reports phoned in by mobile units, and the like. The information is then interpreted and manually entered into a database. By the time the information gets to a user, it is often too late for the user to take advantage of the information. In many instances the information is no longer valid.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) uses a set of twenty-four orbiting satellites to allow ground-based users to determine their locations. Systems for automotive use have dropped in price to the point where they can be purchased for a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. These systems are either built in to the vehicle (e.g., the Cadillac On-Star system) or are portable in a lap top computer (e.g., the Delorme GPS Tripmate system). Such systems, however, are essentially passive, one way systems; that is, they provide the driver with position information based on GPS data. In the case of the On-Star system, there is an integrated cellular phone, but this is used only when actuated by the user or in case of an accident.